Two-way rail fastening



Patented Aug. 12, 1941 Two-war RAIL FASTENING 7 Ralph P. Clarkson, Milford, Conn.

Application July 31, 1940, Serial No. 2.4.8.620

(c1. sea-s s) Claims.

My invention relates to two-way rail fastenings and has particular reference to fastenings of such construction as to fric'tionally engage the base flange of the rail at one side of the rail support and to anchor the rail against movement in either direction longitudinally by engagement with an adjacent tieplate preferably by a portion of rail spike width entering the spike opening of the tieplate.

My present invention provides an inexpensive rail fastener comprising two pieces easy to manufacture and ship, a fastener which leaves the rail free to have vertical motion, which is effective in both directions, and which may be readily located and applied to existing track as well as to new construction and requires no special tieplate design 0 dimensions and no special tools for its application.

Among the objects of my invention is theprovision of a rail fastener moderate in manufacturing cost and effective in operation. A particular object of the present invention is to provide a fastener simple to position and to'apply on present track without distortion of parts and the necessity for relocation after it has been once positioned. A further object is to provide a fastener in which the anchor bar is clamped firmly to the rail so that upward movement thereof relative to the rail base is resisted.

With the foregoing and other objects in View, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction described in the specification and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention. I intend no limitation other than those of the claims when fairly interpreted in the light of the full disclosure and the present state of the art.

Referring now to the drawing illustrative of an embodiment of my invention,

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary, perspective view, partly in section, illustrative of a rail and tieplate support and a preferred form of rail fastener applied according to my invention;

Figs. 2 and 3 are perspective views illustrative r Fig. 4 is a perspective view illustrative of a modified form of anchor member.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the views.

In a preferred embodiment of my invention an anchor member 3, in this case a bar substantially of rail spike cross section, is provided with end portions 4, 8, outwardly and downwardly bent so that as the bar lies along the top face of the base flange of a rail i, both ends extend over and hug the rail edge, one of said ends 4 being here located in a spike hole 5 of a tieplate 2 on which the rail l is supported.

The body or connecting portion of the anchor member 3 may be notched or depressed, as at 9, to interlock or engage with a resilient rail clamp (shown in Fig. 2) having a hook end B which may be positioned in the notch or slot 9 and driven over the member 3. The clamp may be driven until the upturned end 1 snaps over the other edge of the rail base, thus preventing the clamp from backing off. Because of its spring action and the wedge shape of the rail base, to which shape the member 3 preferably conforms, a great pressure may be exerted to clamp the member 3 to the rail base. Thus there is great frictional engagement between the rail base and the fastening means while a portion 4 of the member 3 engages the tieplate, thus anchoring the rail to the tieplate against longitudinal movement but leaving the rail free for vertical movement during wave motion.

If desired, the anchor bar 3 may be of resilient material and bowed upwardly, as shown in Fig. 3, to give a yielding resistance cooperating with the clamp of Fig. 2 which may be relatively stiif. It is obvious that the notch 9 may be located anywhere between the legs 4 and 8, with due regard to the clearance of the support.

Fig. 4 shows a modification of the anchor member comprising a plate 3A having downwardly projecting legs 4A and 8A and means to interlock or engage with the clamp 6 comprising upturned members providing a receiving recess 9A. It is apparent that when the plate of Fig. 4 is substituted for the member 3 in Fig. 1, the leg 4A, preferably of rail spike width, will project into the spike hole 5.

The fastener of Fig. 1 lends itself to application to any size of rail base economically as various clamps may be provided for various rail base widths and thicknesses while the same anchor member may be used in all cases. It is apparent that the anchor member 3 by slight swaging in process of manufacture may be provided with legs of different widths (Fig. 3) so that by placement at the right or left of the support a tight fit may be obtained in either a new or worn spike hole or in spike holes of diiferent size.

In applying the rail fastener of the present invention, the anchor member 3 may be laid on the rail base with an end, as 4, in a spike hole, as 5, and the other end, as 8, over the rail base edge. The clamp 6 may then be positioned with the nose of the hook 6 entering the notch 9. The clamp is then driven in the usual manner transversely of, the rail until the end I catches over the opposite rail edge. It is apparent that this method locates the fastening at once without distortion of the parts or relocation by driving along the rail base. The clamp 6 acts between the top of the member 3 and the bottom of the rail I to clamp the two together as firmly as may be desired.

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture for a rail fastener, an anchor bar comprising an integral bar of metal provided with two ends bent into substantially parallel relation to each other and a portion of each said end bent downwards, the upper face of said bar being notched to receive a clamp, one of the down-turned ends of said bar being substantially of rail spike width measured longitudinally of said bar and so constructed and arranged as to enter a spike hole when said bar is operatively positioned on a rail base in track.

2. In track construction, a two-way holding device for a railroad rail comprising an anchor bar positioned on and extending along the rail base and provided with a downwardly projecting portion of rail spike width engaging a spike opening in an adjacent tieplate and a separate clamping member adapted to be drive over said anchor bar, intermediate the ends of the bar, and extend below said rail to clamp said anchor bar to said rail base, of such character that said anchor bar is engaged intermediate its ends and held rigidly against upward movement relative to the rail base and frictionally against any movement longitudinally of said rail.

3. A structure as defined in claim 2, in which said separate clamping member comprises a member extending over and interlocking with said anchor bar intermediate the ends of said bar and provided with a portion extending transversely below the rail and engaging the other edge of the rail base and said anchor bar is provided at each end with a downturned portion of rectangular section having a fiat side in engagement with the edge of the rail base of such character as to prevent displacement of said anchor bar as said clamping member is driven into position to hold said anchor bar.

4. A rail holding device comprising an anchor bar adapted to lie along a rail base and provided with two downwardly projecting ends, one of said ends adapted to lockingly engage a tieplate, and a connecting portion notched on the upper face intermediate the ends of the bar to receive a clamp, both of said ends constructed and arranged to lie over and engage the edge of the rail base and means to clamp said bar firmly to the rail base, said means comprising a separate clamping member provided with a hook end constructed and arranged to lie in said notch when operatively positioned and another portion adapted to extend below the rail and engage the other edge of the rail base.

5-. A two-was! rail fastening comprising an anchor member provided with a plurality of downwardly extending portions adapted and arranged to engage the edge of the rail base, one of said portions of rectangular cross section and of rail spike width and of such construction as to engage a spike hole in a tieplate when positioned and a body portion so constructed and arranged as to lie along the top of the rail base, said body portion being provided on its upper face with a recess intermediate the ends of the body portion adapted and arranged to receive the jaw of a rail clamp and a rail clamp of such character as to enter said recess and wedge over said anchor member and under said rail base and clamp them together thereby resisting any upward movement of said anchor member relative to said rail base and frictionally resisting any movement of said anchor member longitudinally of said rail, a portion of said clamp extending below the rail and provided with an upturned end engaging the other edge of the rail base.

' RALPH P. CLARKSON. 

